


Of new experiences and soulmates

by lookslikepatricia



Series: Of stuff and soulmates [6]
Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: Ace Haknyeon, Already tagging it because I try to write fun stuff and people end up suffering, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Aro/Ace Hyunjae, Light Angst, Little Bit of Magic, Mentioned Heo Hyunjoon | Hwall, Mostly not beta read, Multi, Non-Binary Kevin, Probably a bit messy, Secondary characters from other groups, Trying not to add to many tags and failing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:09:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28629345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookslikepatricia/pseuds/lookslikepatricia
Summary: After finally working out the courage to play his guitar in front of other people, Jacob enrolls in his university's music club. There he meets Kevin Moon, someone that seems as different from him as someone could be. Slowly, he finds how similar and compatible they are and gets thrown in world that turns him into the person he was always supposed to be.
Relationships: Bae Joonyoung | Jacob/Moon Hyungseo | Kevin, Choi Chanhee | New/Ji Changmin | Q/Kim Younghoon, Ju Haknyeon/Kim Sunwoo, Lee Juyeon/Son Youngjae | Eric
Series: Of stuff and soulmates [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1842940
Comments: 7
Kudos: 21





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome!  
> This time, we are diving into the different lives of these boyz.  
> In a way, this is a conclusion to the whole series, even though is not the last part.  
> One important warning I want to give all of you is that the way I made Kevin understands and expresses his non-binary identity and gender fluidness in the fic is through a more androgynous expression of gender, but obviously, this is just one type of experiencing it and all kinds of non-binary experiences and expressions are valid and important in the world we live in.  
> And, as a cisgender woman, I'm still educating myself, so any errors and misguided descriptions, please don't hesitate in correcting me in the comments.  
> Again, this is mostly self-indulgent, but I hope you all can enjoy it!

Jacob had been staring at the crumpled pamphlet on his hand for almost an hour. Every beginning of the semester was the same thing. He would pass through many students advertising their clubs while going to class and, not having the heart to not pick every single piece of paper they handed, he always ended up with the bottom of his backpack full of pamphlets and the consciousness that most of them would be thrown in the trash later when he decided to clean the bag.

Still, there was one pamphlet that always escaped the trash can, only to be put in the top drawer of his nightstand. It was the one that he would actually look at after being handed it. He would walk to class reading and re-reading the information on it, the same one he had been reading for three years now. Then he would get to class, sit on his usual seat by the window and stare at it until one of the professors started their exposition of the new course and he had to crumple it down his jeans pockets. And then, after getting home later that day, Jacob would lay down on his bed staring at it again until he sighed and put it with the others.

This semester, however, Jacob couldn’t do it. Not after finally gathering all the courage he didn’t know he had to play his guitar in front of other people during this year’s church summer camp. Playing music was something that he had always enjoyed and his parents had supported his hobby thinking he would use for God’s work. Jacob, however, had always been shy and just played by himself in his bedroom.

But now that he had seen that people were more positive than critical about his skills, the buzz to keep on playing had settled on his heart. And the music club at university would be a great opportunity for him to dab into more secular music. So he sighed and texted the number in the paper, getting the information about the first meeting of the semester almost immediately. Feeling proud of himself, Jacob put the pamphlet and his phone on the nightstand before turning the lights off and going to bed.

The next few days were very tense for him. At every corner of the university, Jacob would see people carrying musical instruments and worry if they were part of the club. He also wondered if anyone he crossed in the corridors were part of it or if they knew he was going to be one of them soon. He wasn’t sure why he was so scared of people finding out, but the whole thing was anxiety-inducing for him. Jacob always had to stop himself and breathe deeply a few times to remind himself that there was no way anyone would know about him joining the club. He didn't have any friends around campus and wasn't close enough with any of his classmates to even mention the club.

At the same time, he kept quiet about it too at home. He wasn't sure if his parents would support this endeavor or if they would only use it just as another way to pressure him to play at church, so it’s easier just not to mention it. After all, if he can play mundane music at university, he can also play hymns at service every Sunday. There weren't many arguments Jacob could give back against that logic.

His only sort of comfort, funnily enough, was the cheerful text he had received with the first meeting information. Those few words sounded so nice to him, like the person who had written was actually excited to have him in the club. He read and reread it every time any sign of doubt or fear assaulted him. It gave him the strength to not give up something he had been wanting to do for so long. Still, when Jacob found himself clinging to his guitar cover in front of the club’s room, the fear paralyzed him. He was bracing himself to go inside just a few minutes before the meeting, hoping that this wasn't the biggest mistake of his life.

“You okay there, buddy?” He heard a smooth voice ask him in English. Jacob turned around and met a person the same height as him, with black hair curling around his delicate eyes, which he was sure had some black eyeliner on, button nose, and thin lips with bright pink lipstick. The person, because Jacob wasn’t actually sure if they were a boy or a girl, had a black cropped top over a white long-sleeved shirt and very tight black skinny jeans hugging their body from the waist down. It was a sight Jacob wasn’t ready to see and he felt his face warm up.

“I’m just breathing, you know…” He found himself clinging harder to the guitar while also answering in English. “Trying to go in…” The person smiled at him and it was breathtaking.

“Oh, you speak English!” They said back, this time in Korean, apparently not noticing Jacob malfunctioning. “And you don’t need to worry, no one is going to bite you…” They then raised an eyebrow, in a smug expression. “Unless you want it.” Jacob got even more lost in what he could say and the other noticed. “Sorry about that…” They laughed it out, a bit embarrassed. “Sometimes my brain doesn’t know when to stop my mouth. I’m Kevin, by the way. Kevin Moon.”

“Oh, so you are a boy!” Jacob said without thinking, making Kevin give him a weird expression. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure.”

“Not really, but I guess it's okay.” They soothed him out a bit. “Since that's what I’m going for.” Kevin nodded after finishing speaking and opening the door of the music club. They looked back at Jacob, who had widened eyes and a dropped mouth by pure shock. “You coming in?” The other asked and Jacob only followed them in, not actually aware of his own movements.

They went inside and Kevin said hi to a few people who were already there while Jacob sat as far as he could from the other. His brain was trying to grasp the whole interaction he had had with Kevin, not sure on what to think. He couldn’t understand the hair or the makeup or the clothes. It all felt surreal for him, mostly because the whole effect on the other was ethereal, making something inside of him get unsettled. Conscious of that, Jacob tried his best to relax while more people came into the room, but seeing Kevin keep an eye on him while the meeting started didn’t help at all.

“Since we have a few new members, I thought it would be nice for everybody to introduce themselves.” The short and menacing girl who had been introducing the club since the beginning of the meeting said. “It’s just some basic information…” She said and then looked straight at Kevin, who just shrugged it out. “Like your name, what course and year you are in, and what you do musically.” There were a few nods around the circle they were sitting and the girl smiled. “My name is Jeon Soyeon, I’m a second-year Music Producing student and president of this club. I rap, sing, and compose, mostly.” Soyeon turned to the person besides her, who was a very handsome guy wearing round glasses.

“I’m Im Sejun, hopefully graduating this semester from Music Producing…” The boy smiled and he had very deep dimples on his face. “I dab in a few instruments, but wouldn’t say I play any and I sing a little too.”

“You do more than sing a little, hyung…” Another guy said and Sejun looked at him with a piercing gaze.

“Shut up, Hanse.” He said back to the guy and let the next person introduce themselves. As there were around twelve people in the club, introductions were a bit slow and by the time Jacob had to introduce himself, he had forgotten about half of the other member’s names. Still, he said his name, major and instrument and people around him welcomed him to the club.

“Dude, you’re American?” The boy on his side, who Jacob remembered the name was Mark, asked him in English.

“No, I’m Canadian.” He answered back, also in English, and Mark’s eyes glistened.

“Dude, me too…” Jacob smiled back and wanted to say something else, but a fake cough was heard and both boys turned to the source of the sound. They were met with Kevin standing up, raising an eyebrow to them. Mark apologized, whispering, but Jacob only stared back, making the other give him a condescending expression.

“Hi, guys.” Kevin started in English but then turned to Korean right after. “My name's Kevin Moon and I’m a Pisces.” Soyeon rolled her eyes, but let them continue. “I’m an international student from Canada in my second year of Design, and a non-binary individual. The pronouns are they/them, but I don’t mind he/his or she/her if they are not used exclusively.” Kevin said the last part looking straight into Jacob’s eyes and the Psychology student felt that was being said especially for him. 

A few more people introduced themselves afterward and Soyeon moved on with the meeting. Jacob, however, felt stuck on Kevin’s introduction. Of course he had heard about genderqueer people before and, after three years studying psychology, he had been exposed to a lot of stuff his conservative parents had never even dared to try to understand, and he was okay with it. He understood people's lives were their own and he had no right to impose his own religious views on them, but he wasn’t used to dealing with people so different from himself. Jacob had never even talked with someone like Kevin before that afternoon.

The Psychology student’s attention was only brought back to the meeting when every member was asked to perform a small piece. A few people played the instruments they had brought with them and others showed their singing or rap skills. Some had also prepared duets with other members, including Sejun and Hanse as rap and singing duo. Jacob played his guitar just after Mark, who also had brought a guitar and played for a bit. The other new member had given him enough courage to play one of his favorite songs and the Psychology student pretended to not see Kevin's eyes shining while he played. He really didn’t understand the other.

Kevin was the last person to play and Jacob again felt flabbergasted by them. They sat at the keyboard in the corner of the room and played a small piece of another one of his favorite songs. The Psychology student recognized it on the third chord under the new arrangement the other had done, turning the usually sad and emotional melody into a bittersweet experience. It left his mind blank and he almost couldn’t give his opinion when Soyeon put the day and time of their meetings for voting.

After the meeting was over, Jacob hurried himself to leave, just briefly listening to a few of the members praising his guitar skills. With one last look at Kevin, who had fallen into an exciting conversation with Mark, he left worried about getting home late for dinner. He didn’t want to deal with his parents’ questions of where he was.

The Design student, however, noticed all of his steps while leaving, intrigued. During the whole meeting, Kevin had observed Jacob’s glances at them. A part of them was still annoyed about the Psychology student’s misguided comment and had done whatever they thought would make the other see how comfortable they were in their identity, but there was also something else on those glances. A confusion that Kevin had come to identify with people who were questioning their sexualities would have while looking at them.

They went back to their dorm after the meeting, hoping to find their roommate already there, but the room was completely dark and empty. Sighing, Kevin put their bag over the bed, a bit desperate for a distraction. The whole way back had let them think even deeper about Jacob Bae and it was exactly what they didn’t want to do. People like him, that seem nice and soft, but that would slip the first shit that came to their heads to Kevin exhausted them to the core. The Design student preferred dealing with the occasional open bigot that crossed their way once in a while. People like Jacob had the power to go under their skin and make Kevin want to be petty. People like him, who obviously didn’t intend to actually force a gender over them but would still misgender him just because it was the way they saw the world. In a binary.

Already feeling their brain overworking over that, Kevin went over to the mirror on Changmin’s corner of the room and took a photo of themselves accentuating their outfit, especially the tight pants hugging their ass perfectly, and sent it to their roommate. It would bring Performing Arts student back to the dorm quicker. Just under ten minutes later, the boy with sharp eyes, thin lips, and long neck came in, straight to strand Kevin on their bed. Like they were sure it would happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey again,  
> This chapter and story, in general, have put me in a very nervous state. Maybe it's because it hits too close from home.  
> Anyway, I just hope this is going to be a nice and interesting journey for everyone.  
> Any interaction literally makes my day and see you next week with a new chapter.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The information goes around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go to the second chapter.  
> Please, enjoy!

For a week, Jacob and Kevin saw each other everywhere around the university. During lunch, going to class or at the library, Jacob would see Kevin’s longish hair and very tight pants while Kevin saw Jacob’s unstyled black hair and light washed jeans. The Psychology student, however, had no idea of how to deal with those encounters and would turn around or walk faster to avoid having to talk with the Design student, who would only get even more annoyed (and intrigued) by him.

And that only kept Jacob on their mind. They wondered why such a nice-looking guy, in all of the connotations of the word, felt such need to avoid them. By the weekend, they had come to the conclusion that the other was one of those people who when they didn't have anything nice to say, they wouldn’t say anything. Which was better than being more openly ostracized. 

That conclusion, however, wasn’t enough for Kevin, and on the next meeting, they kept on observing Jacob, who was obviously shrinking under their gaze. It was somewhat fun for the Design student, having all that power over somebody else, but at the end of the day, they would go back to their dorm just wanting to be distracted and touched. 

In moments like that were the ones when Kevin was the gladdest about their agreement with Changmin. The two have met just as they moved into their shared dorm before class started in their first year and Changmin's cheerful personality fit Kevin’s dorkish one very well. Having just moved to Korea to study and with a somewhat broken Korean, the Performing Arts student became their first friend in the country and had introduced Kevin to his other friends, who also had become quite close to them. And it was one of those hangouts with their friends that Changmin and Kevin had fallen drunkenly in bed together. The next morning, the two had talked about over their hangover, agreeing that, as long as they weren’t seeing anyone, they could have sex wherever they wanted.

It worked for both, especially with all the stress university brought to them. Kevin had their scholarship and high standards to reach over and Changmin was one of the university's top dancers. They were usually more stressed than not.

“So, what’s going on?” Changmin asked after they both had taken a shower and Kevin was getting ready for bed while he changed his sheets. The Design student raised their eyes to their roommate with a silent ‘what’ on his lips. The other only raised his eyebrow.

“Oh, it’s nothing.” Kevin started. “Just this new guy in the music club.” Changmin only exclaimed a small ‘oh’ and came over to the other’s bed, sitting without being invited.

“Is he cute?” He asked, getting excited.

“Yeah, I guess you could say that…” Changmin snorted, used to Kevin downplaying their crushes. “Fine…” They sat back right in front of the other. “He is pretty handsome. And pretty. And handsome.” A smile appeared on their mouth. “His eyes are really soft unless he is concentrating on playing his guitar. Then it gets all sharp and sexy. And his nose is so cute, Changmin-ah.” Kevin sighed, annoyed. “And he got this quite plush lips that would be great to kiss and bite but…”

“But…” The Performing Arts student continued, curious.

“The first time we met, he said I’m a boy after I introduced myself. And then he keeps on avoiding me like I’m this alien that he doesn’t know how to talk to.” Kevin complained and Changmin got closer, hugging them.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Kevin.” He drew soothing circles on their back. “Maybe he doesn't know how to act because he never met someone non-binary before?” Changmin asked, hopeful.

“Yeah, I think so. But it’s still infuriating.” They whined and the roommate nodded, not knowing what to say more.

In the morning, Changmin got early to the dance club studio. Even if he spent most of his day dancing or in classes about dance and performance, moving his body in the rhythm of the music was never enough for him. 

He wasn’t surprised to see Juyeon already inside the studio when he got there. As a Law student, the boy always had to leave before the club meeting’s end for class, which would cut his time to practice choreography short if he didn’t come in early. And Juyeon was one of the members with the biggest commitment to the club. 

“Morning classes again?” Changmin asked while putting his bag close to the control of the stereo.

“You know I always have morning class, Changmin-ah,” Juyeon answered, stopping his warm-up to look at him through the mirror. The Performing Arts student saw a drop of sweat go down at Juyeon’s sharp and feline features and once again he imagined how it would be the cause of his friend’s sweat.

But the Law student was quite romantic and didn’t understand hook up culture very well. Changmin had been living proof of that, as he had hit on the other when they met at the club the year before. Juyeon was one of the best dancers in the group and very attractive, so Changmin didn’t miss his opportunity. The other, however, thought he was just being friendly and reciprocated his closeness with his own clumsy way of demonstrating affection and, by the time Changmin could admit he had flirted with him, to Juyeon’s utter surprise, they were already too deep on friendship territory.

Kevin had also tried to hit on Juyeon, but with their dorkiness and the Law student’s unawareness, it had gone nowhere. With time, they became friends too, and again Juyeon had to live through to one of his friends saying that they had tried to flirt with him at some point for him to realize.

“Oh, I have news…” Changmin said, excitedly getting closer to Juyeon to warm up too. “Kev has a new crush!”

“And?!” This time the other asked, without looking at him. Changmin crossed his arms, annoyed, and stayed in silence until Juyeon looked at him. “What? They have a new crush every other week!” The Law student defended himself, making the other sigh.

“I know… But it’s still exciting.” Juyeon raised an eyebrow at him.

“Why?” He really didn’t understand why Changmin always got excited by Kevin thinking someone was cute.

“Because…” Changmin raised his voice, getting a bit exasperated because couldn’t think properly about the reason. He let his arms fall down his side, defeated. “You know how lonely they are.” The Performing Arts student whispered, in a sad tone. “I just want Kevin to find someone who can be 100% with them.” He looked down to his feet and Juyeon got closer to him, putting an empathetic hand over his shoulder. “Someone who can take them on dates and cuddle them to sleep.” Changmin then raised his eyes to Juyeon’s. “Someone who isn’t an emotional mess like me.”

Juyeon wasn’t sure what he could do to comfort him. He knew about Changmin’s struggles until a certain point, but he wasn’t a specialist on the subject, having dated just a few times in his life, all ending in heartbreak for him. A few other members of the club had suddenly started to fill in the studio and the two boys had to leave their conversation behind to focus.

When the meeting ended, Changmin left the studio to freshen up and watch his only class for the day. It was one of the only subjects he had that didn’t involve dancing and sometimes he was glad to sit in a normal classroom to watch a normal exposition about the history of something. After class, he rushed to the station closest to the campus.

The trip took him around half an hour and Changmin used that time to search for a song to choreograph for one of his classes. He started with a few of Kevin’s suggestions, his roommate was always finding new artists just by how connected to music they were. That had been, actually, the first thing that brought them together after starting to share a dorm. The Design student was listening to music at a low volume and he just commented that the song playing from their notebook would be fun to choreograph.

After also listening to some of the recommended songs by the streaming app, the Performing Arts student got out at the city’s central station and waited for a few minutes for Chanhee for their lunch appointment. The two friends made sure to see each other at least once a week after they went to study at different universities and the time that best fits both of their schedules was exactly during lunch on the day Chanhee had to go back home to have dinner with his parents. 

Chanhee and Changmin had become friends during high school, being brought together by the pressure their families and themselves put over their career choices. Both of their parents only accepted their dreams if they could perform outstandingly in their determined fields ― Chanhee in Magic and Changmin in dancing ― and that pressure was something that both kept on feeling during school and beyond.

But what actually cemented their friendship was the glance of coral roses on Chanhee’s side during gym class in their first year. Changmin hadn’t meant to look at him while they changed and had screamed so loudly then one of their teachers had gone inside of the room to see what had happened, only to find him unable to explain why he had screamed while Chanhee tried to calm him down. Only after a few days, he was able to ask the other about the roses and show him his identical ones at the same place. As most teenagers after finding their soulmates, they tried to date, even though no romantic feelings arose from either of them and they decided to go on still being friends and platonic soulmates.

The other, who had finally changed the pink hair he had since high school to blonde, found the Performing Arts student in one of the coffee shops around the station and they went to their favorite grilled gopchang restaurant in the area.

“Then hyung had the audacity to say he was going to correct my essay. My essay! The one that had me sleeping two hours for a week and he says that! Seriously, sometimes I have no idea what goes on Jaehyun hyung’s brain…” Chanhee rant between bites until he noticed the other looking far away over the window of the restaurant. “Yah, Ji Changmin, are you even listening to me?” The Performing Arts student turned back to his friend and went back to eating under his attentive stare.

“You know…” Changmin started before Chanhee could say anything about his mood. “Kev has a new crush!” He said, excitedly and the Magic student lowered his spoon. 

“And you are pretending to be excited for them instead of admitting to yourself that you like them.” It wasn’t a question and Changmin let out an offended squeak.

“I don’t like Kevin. We have an agreement!” He exclaimed, defensive.

“Keep telling yourself that, Changmin-ah…” Chanhee said, getting his attention back on his food and ignoring the multiple expressions his friend was making in front of him. He was just tired of Changmin playing around really believing he didn’t catch feelings for anyone.

At the same time, the Performing Arts student closed down and finished eating in silence, feeling hurt. If Chanhee only knew what was going on inside of his heart, he would never say something like that. Of course, Changmin loved Kevin and appreciated them with every single cell on his body, but not like this. Not like his confused heart kept falling for the same person time after time in recent years.

The two friends said goodbye outside of the restaurant and the Magic student went back to the bus station beside the train station to go home. His mood wasn’t great and facing a whole dinner with his parents only being interested in hearing him talk about university only made everything worse. Still, he knew he should be grateful for them actually backing him up financially, and going back home once a week was the least he could do.

It was a short trip until his neighborhood just outside the city and Chanhee took a small nap to compensate for the sleepless week he had. He ended up being early for dinner and, not wanting to be around his parents more than necessary, the Magic student went to the playground just behind his house. Chanhee sat on the swing and watched the sun starting to go down on the horizon while thinking about Changmin.

To him, the Performing Arts student was like family. He was the closest person to Chanhee, even closer than his blood family, and seeing him so oblivious of his own feelings was painful. He, however, knew that it didn’t matter how much he tried to tell him, he wouldn’t listen. Changmin was that stubborn, but, well, Chanhee was too.

“Hyung!” He heard suddenly and turned around to see a high school student getting closer. The boy had his uniform in disarranging and had bright red-dyed hair.

“Sunwoo-yah!” He called back and the boy gave him a small smile before throwing his backpack on the floor by the swing structure and sitting down at the swing beside him.

“Hey, hyung…” Sunwoo greeted him. “Haven’t seen you around here for a while.”

“Well, I have been staying here the least I have to…” The Magic student commented without going into details. The younger knew and understood him, so he didn’t need to explain himself to him.

And that was one of the best things about their friendship. Even though Sunwoo was two years younger than him and acted like a brat from time to time, they were on the same page about a lot of stuff. The high school student was mature enough to understand Chanhee’s struggles and the Magic student was silly enough to enjoy Sunwoo’s teases and jokes.

“I heard about you and Hak, though. Congrats.” The older said, elbowing the other’s arm.

“Thanks, hyung…” He responded, embarrassed. 

“How’s it going?” Chanhee asked, relishing at the blush that was coming over the younger’s neck.

“Fine, I guess…” Sunwoo said and then sighed, looking at the floor under his feet. “It’s actually a lot harder than I imagined.” The high school student only felt the older’s eyes on him before continuing. “And it’s not just because he is ace and stuff. Or because he is in med school out of anything!” His voice had suddenly started to sound very stressed. “We both are new in this relationship thingy and Eric gives terrible advice.” He then raised his eyes to Chanhee and found the other smiling softly at him. “Ugh, don’t look at me like this.”

“Okay, sorry…” He turned around, hiding his small giggles under his hand. “But it’s so cute, you being all serious about him.” The Magic student then prompted his swing closer to Sunwoo’s to pinch his cheeks. “Look at you, all grown up and with a boyfriend!” Chanhee made a cutesy voice to tease him and the younger slapped his hands away from his face.

“Stop!” He whined, annoyed. “I have to go through stuff like this from Eric every day!” That complaint made the older laugh loudly and Sunwoo ended up smiling too.

“How is he?” Chanhee asked after calming down a bit. “He basically only hangs out with Kevin or Jaehyun hyung.”

“Annoying, as usual,” Sunwoo said, rolling his eyes. “Recently he has been all about how he misses Hyunjun.” The older raised an eyebrow at him. “I know, I miss him too, but Eric is teasing me because there’s this thing that he can talk with Hyunjun and not me. I don’t know.” He shrugged and the Magic student sighed. “Changmin hyung?”

“He is so stupid, Sunwoo…” He started, already feeling his mood going down again. “He is keeping stuff from me, and worse, from himself and I’m exhausted.”

“Well, you kind of can’t be mad at him for keeping stuff from him when you’re doing the same.” Chanhee looked straight into Sunwoo’s eyes.

“I didn’t come here to be attacked like this, brat.”

“No, you came to give your parents your weekly academic report…” The younger commented, this time softly.

“You’re right…” The Magic student said and the two boys stayed in silence for a few minutes looking up at the sky. “Kevin has a new crush.” He let out just to continue the conversation so he didn’t have to go in yet.

“Again?” Sunwoo asked, a bit exasperated and Chanhee only nodded to confirm. “Do you think this time can work it out?” He turned to the older, who was still looking up.

“I don’t know. I didn’t let Changmin give the details.” The younger nodded aware the Magic student wasn’t seeing. Sighing, he got up and got his backpack from the floor. The movement was what made Chanhee look again at him and Sunwoo gave him an excuse to go home, knowing the older would prefer staying outside with him through most of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello,  
> First, I really want to thank everybody who read the first chapter and left kudos or comments. I'm seriously amazed by it.  
> Second, as you guys may have noticed, I introduced more boyz in this chapter and, so that you know, the next one is going to have the same vibe. But after that, we're getting back to the main plot.  
> Anyways, see you next week.
> 
> About Kevin's identity in this fic, any errors and misguided descriptions, please don't hesitate to correct me in the comments.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goes around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the third chapter, guys. Enjoy!

On the next day, Sunwoo dragged himself out of bed at that ungodly hour he had to wake up to be on time for school, already dreading the whole day he would have to be there. He wasn’t necessarily cut out for the morning and imagine that in the next year he could be only having afternoon classes was the only thing that made him actually get out of the bed at 6 am.

The boy got ready in a groggy way and went out to catch the bus to school, cursing his younger self for wanting to go to this particular high school where he could focus on developing his music while still having the normal crazy school based on university entrance examination experience. It was quite far and he had to wake up even earlier than if he studied at the local high school. Sunwoo only had his own ambitious ass to blame for this.

He got to his classroom just a few minutes before his home teacher already finding an overly awake Eric sitting on their conjunction desk. Sunwoo grumbled his greeting, throwing himself on his seat and immediately lowering his head to have a few seconds of peace before class, but his best friend wasn’t having any of it.

“Yah, sit properly…” The boy, with dyed dark blonde hair, said while putting both of his hands on Sunwoo’s shoulder and pulling him up. He didn’t resist, knowing that Eric wouldn’t let him be caught napping by the teacher, but still scowled at him. Before the other could retort, the teacher entered the room and started class, so he only stuck his tongue out to Sunwoo.

However opposite the two high school students were, with Eric being loud, expensive, and organized and Sunwoo being reserved, messy and confrontational, they had become friends in the first week of their first year. The younger, even if by a few months, had just come back to Korea after living a few years in the United States and approached the other just as they were made seatmates. For a reason neither of them knew exactly, they hit off and later completed their trio with Hyunjun, the quiet and introspective boy who intimidated most of the other students.

The three boys had gone through most of the high school together, helping each other with classes and their normal teenager problems. Hyunjun, the one with the best grades, let the other two copy his homework and helped them study for exams, while Sunwoo always had their back and told off any student who decided to pick on the other two, and Eric would constantly cheer them up when things got hard and scold them for not drinking enough water or sleeping enough.

But recently Hyunjun had gone to Italy to continue his studies in fashion, leaving Sunwoo and Eric by themselves to face their last year of high school, with all the stress and anxiety the university entrance exams brought.

“Why are you so tired?” Eric asked him as soon as Suwoon lowered his head on the desk after their first class.

“Had this piece to finish for teacher Bang…” He just commented.

“You still need to sleep, though.” The other scolded him, making him shrug. Eric rolled his eyes, knowing well how much more important his technical music classes were than the normal ones. “Did you also talk to Hak hyung?” He asked, going back to his cheerful natural tone.

“Quickly, he was studying for a test.” Sunwoo's expression relaxed while he remembered how much his boyfriend liked the snippet of the song he was working on.

“Owww…” Eric exploded, pinching the other’s cheeks. “You get all mushy talking about him!”

“I don’t!” Sunwoo sat straight, exclaiming annoyed but noticed his friend smirking. He had fallen into Eric’s trap and there was no way he would let him end the conversation now. “You’re infuriating, you know?”

“Why? Because I like to talk with my best friend in the whole world?” The other rolled his eyes but couldn’t hide the small smile that had appeared on his lips.

“Yeah, exactly because of that…” He threw back, only making Eric laugh.

Their second class started just then and both boys paid as much attention as they could. The younger especially, since, differently from his two friends, he hadn't taken technical classes after the normal classes and still had no idea what he was going to apply for university. He didn’t have a dream career and only focused on his studies so that he could get to a good university like it was expected of him. Sometimes he envied Sunwoo and Hyunjun for knowing what they wanted to do since they were children. The same happened with their older friends, all already at university studying exactly what they wanted to do for the rest of their lives. Still, he never showed those kinds of feelings to any of them and celebrated their victories with them, exactly like he had done when Hyunjun had announced he was going to Europe.

“I saw Chanhee hyung yesterday…” Sunwoo commented while they went down to the cafeteria during lunchtime. “He asked about you. Said you only hang out with Kevin or Jaehyun hyung.”

“Oh, hyung can’t complain. He always says he is busy when I ask to hang out with him!” He complained, pouting and Sunwoo laughed.

“He is always busy and you need to force him to meet you.”

“I know, I know…” Eric said, in English when they reached the line. “Any news?”

“Not really.” The older started. “Only if you consider Kevin hyung having a new crush news.” The other turned to him, shocked.

“They have a new crush and didn’t tell me…” Eric’s tone sounded offended and Sunwoo openly laughed.

“Don’t ask me for details. Chanhee hyung didn’t know any.” He said, cutting in front of his best friend on the line to get his food while Eric recovered from the gossip.

After eating, the two boys went back to class, and then Eric still had two hours of self-study to do while Sunwoo went to his technical classes. The younger kept an eye on his phone waiting for Kevin to answer the upset text he had sent. They had become close after Changmin had introduced the Designer student to his other friends and Eric had been very happy to have someone besides his family to talk in English.

No answer had come until Eric could leave school for the day, although Jaehyun had asked him if he wanted to go to the PC Room with him, to which he promptly said yes. He had no idea how the other had time for university, his internship at his family shamanic practice, his buzzing social life, and very high hanks on various online games. But he never said no to spending time with his soulmate.

In a way, it had been very surprising meeting his soulmate in such an ordinary way the year before. At the same time Changmin had introduced Kevin to his friends, he also had introduced a colleague from his dance club to them called Juyeon. And well, Eric only knew Changmin because Sunwoo had introduced him and Hyunjun to his older neighbor Chanhee in the first year of high school, and he had introduced his best friend Changmin to them.

After getting over his awkwardness with most of the group, mostly with Kevin and Chanhee (if you asked Eric he was still quite awkward with him and Sunwoo), Juyeon introduced his friends to them. And one of them was Lee Jaehyun, to whom Eric had been introduced in a particularly heavy boozed house party on the apartment the older shared with Sangyeon, another of Juyeon’s friend. At first sight, the younger could recognize the black and yellow warbler on his wrist and that was the first thing the two bond over, very excitedly.

Eric had gotten very thrilled by meeting Jaehyun since he always had dreamed of meeting his soulmate and falling in love with them. With time, however, it became clear that he only felt a brotherly bond with the Magic student and that, even if he didn’t, nothing would happen with them as Jaehyun was not only asexual but also aromantic and didn’t have any interest whatsoever in romantic relationships. The younger wasn’t disappointed by it, though, since he already had fallen for someone else in the time he had become part of this huge friend group Changmin and Juyeon had brought together.

“ERIC!” The high school student heard the scream as soon as he entered the PC Room and turned to see Jaehyun ignoring the ugly looks he was receiving while he waved to him.

“HYUNG!” He screamed back and went to him, smiling. The older had already sat the pc on his side to Eric so they could play for the rest of the afternoon in peace.

“So, how’re things?” The older asked while they started their first round of the game. One thing that both Eric and Jaehyun had in common was how talkative they both could be and that set them apart from most gamers. They would have full conversations while playing and still, somehow, win all the rounds.

“Ah, you know, hyung, busy and crazy at school, bored at home, stressed because I don’t know what to do at uni, yearning hard for Jueyon hyung.” He said, nonchalantly while moving his character to cover Jaehyun’s one on the map.

“Well, first, you know I can help you figure out what you’re supposed to do with your life…” Jaehyun started but Eric interrupted him.

“Hyung, I don’t wanna use your powers for that. What a waste!” The younger exclaimed, a bit annoyed.

“It’s not a waste.” The Magic student said back. “I have this ability to help people. You are people!” He looked in Eric’s direction and saw him roll his eyes.

“Thanks for the compliment, hyung.”

“I’m serious!” He complained looking back at his screen.

“I know you are…” The high school student started and then noticed an enemy trying to ambush them. “On your two o’clock, hyung.”

“Saw it…” Jaehyun turned his character around and shot the enemy multiple times before moving with Eric to the next location. “It’s my job guiding people through their struggles. That’s why I have a bond with a deity.”

“Sure, hyung…” Eric said, dismissively, making the older scowl. He knew most people didn’t take shamanism that seriously nowadays, especially with all this scentification of magic happening in the last two centuries, but it was hard for him to accept that not even his friends believed in him and his abilities. But he wasn’t one to force anyone to anything and the almost daily fights he had with Chanhee about their opposites interpretations of the nature of magic was enough to make him know when to shut up about it.

“Second, you should do something about Juyeon. He is too slow to notice your subtle flirting.”

“I don’t flirt with him, hyung.” The younger let out, annoyed. He had always tried his best to be nice and fun around Jueyon instead of shying away like he usually did with his crushes.

“Your blushing when he looks in your direction, then,” Jaehyun commented, laughing and Eric rolled his eyes. “You should start, Eric.”

“I can’t, hyung. He is too good for me…” He said, whining.

“Too good?” The older asked, astonished. “You can’t seriously think that.”

“I do…” Eric finished the round and turned around to look at the Magic student. “He is tall, handsome, intelligent, hot…” He said while counting the adjectives on his fingers.

“I’ve seen him eat dirty when he was five, I’m not buying this bullshit.” The older responded, annoyed. “You really have nothing to worry about him, Eric. Juyeon is slow but he’s also super down to earth. As soon as he notices you like him, he is going to start questioning himself if he likes you or not. And there’s where your chance lies.” He finished in a mysterious tone that made the young giggle.

“Did you use your powers for that?” Eric asked, still laughing.

“I didn’t need to, I know both of you…” He continued in the same tone and turned back to the PC to start the next round and the younger did the same.

They played for approximately another hour, talking about random stuff that popped up in their heads and Jaehyun paid for their snacks, always happy to treat Eric, and only him, to anything he wanted. Well, sometimes he bought food for Haknyeon too, but who could resist him being constantly hungry and cute? Both boys were special to him. He had seen Haknyeon grow and tag along with him, Sangyeon and Juyeon when they played in the playground around their houses and it had been him to whom the younger had first talked about his lack of sexual attraction. They shared not only childhood memories but also a deeper understanding of each other’s experiences in the world. And Eric, well, Eric was his soulmate and he wasn’t stupid to ignore such a deep magical and divine bond. Also, the youngest of his friends was so similar to him that he couldn’t help to have a bigger spot for him than for others.

“Ah, hyung, you’re gonna like this one.” The high school student said while they were playing their last round of the day. “Kevin hyung has a new crush!” He informed the other, excitedly.

“They do?” Jaehyun asked and Eric nodded.

“I still don’t know the details, he isn’t answering me and Sunwoo always tells half gossip!” The younger whined, making him smile fondly.

“That’s our Sunwoo, isn’t he?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, guys  
> As I said in the last chapter, this was also going the be an introduction to the other characters, but it kind of ended bigger than I first imagined, so the last few boyz are still to come.  
> I did, however, had a lot of fun finally writing Jaehyun in this series. He has been mentioned too many times before.  
> Thank you for all the nice comments and kudos.  
> See you next week.
> 
> About Kevin's identity in this fic, any errors and misguided descriptions, please don't hesitate to correct me in the comments.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And goes around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, hey. I'm back with the fourth chapter.  
> I'm sorry about the small hiatus, but I hope y'all can enjoy it!

After spending most of his afternoon with Eric, Jaehyun went back home overexcited to tell Sangyeon about Kevin. He knew the older wouldn’t care much, but he still wanted to be the first to tell him. As soon as he crossed the front door, he heard the oldest greeting him from his bedroom. Their apartment was tiny, especially for one with two rooms, and they could hear anything the other was doing from anywhere inside. In particular silent days, they could even hear the other from the corridor. Still, it was their home and they wouldn’t change it for anything else in the world. Well, maybe for a bigger apartment when they could afford it.

Sangyeon appeared in the narrow corridor that connected the living room and kitchen to the bedroom while Jaehyun was still taking out his shoes. He had stayed in the whole day, enjoying his only day off work that week. Enjoying may be an overstatement since he had taken that time to work on his final project. He never thought that his final year at university would be as hellish as the first one.

“Are you so starved of human contact today that you came to greet me, hyung?” Jaehyun followed the older to the kitchen where Sangyeon was filling a glass of water.

“No…” He answered nonchalantly, not wanting to admit that his eyes were already blurring from staring at his notebook’s screen the whole day. Seeing anything that wasn’t a business concept was a relief. “I was thirsty.” Sangyeon then drank his water to affirm what he had just said, but the younger didn’t buy it. He had known the other for too long.

The two boys had been friends from birth. Their families were neighbors and their mothers, best friends. So they met when her doctor had cleared Jaehyun’s mother to start receiving non-family visits. The younger boy was just three months old and it wasn't like he and Sangyeon, who had just had his first birthday and started to take his first steps without help, could do more than observe and be observed. Still, thinking back, the older liked to imagine his defensive instinct over his younger friends started at the exact moment Jaehyun gave him a still gummy smile in that afternoon.

So they grew up together, playing around the playground and constantly being in each other's houses. A few months later, when another neighbor gave birth, Juyeon became part of their daily lives and the three boys never left each other's sides. None of them had siblings and Sangyeon took on his hands to protect and his younger friends. 

And the same happened when they were a bit older and a new family moved to their neighborhood, bringing them the even smallest Haknyeon. At first, Juyeon got annoyed by the youngest following them around in the playground, mostly because Sangyeon would lower their pace or their games so that he could play with them. He, however, had been the first one to defend him when another kid pushed Haknyeon from the swing.

The oldest lowered his glass at the counter with a sudden fond smile on his lips. Sometimes memories of his shared childhood would come and nostalgia of more simple times assaulted him. Yes, he was one of those people that could say with all the letters he had a happy childhood. For Sangyeon, it was a time where everything was easier. A time with less secrets and worries.

“Oh, hyung, you are happy to see me!” Jaehyun exclaimed, teasingly and the older only rolled his eyes while running away from the hug the other was trying to give over the counter. The younger laughed and Sangyeon washed his glass on the sink.

“I made too much kimchi jjigae for lunch, so I don’t think we need anything else for dinner.” He commented, back still turned to Jaehyun, who whined.

“But I want chicken!”

“You can’t eat fried chicken every day,” Sangyeon said in the same monotone he always used to scold Jaehyun and the younger didn’t say anything back. He heard, however, one of the stools being moved from the counter and when he turned back, Jaehyun was sitting there looking at him. “Jaehyun-ah, I don’t have time to talk. I have a project to finish.”

“Hyung, you have the whole semester to finish it!” He protested and Sangyeon just propped himself on the sink. “You can take five minutes off to hear this.” The older sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, knowing he wouldn’t be able to go back to his bedroom until Jaehyun said what he wanted.

“Go on, then.”

“So, I was with Eric, right?” He started, but Sangyeon’s not-impressed face made him stop. “Okay, okay. I’m going straight to the point.” Jaehyun breathed deeply and dramatically. “Kevin has a new crush!” He opened his arms while almost screaming and Sangyeon only raised his eyebrow at him.

“And?”

“And we don’t know the details yet, but I have a good feeling about this one!” Somehow, Jaehyun stretched his arms even more and started to nod his head. The older, however, didn’t look impressed. “Come on, hyung. Be a bit more enthusiastic about your dongsaengs love lives.” The younger dropped his arms and pouted.

“I am enthusiastic about it!” Sangyeon protested. “I was really happy when Hak and Sunwoo started dating!” He, then, sighed. “It’s just that Kevin has a new crush every week.”

“I know, I know…” Jaehyun looked serious for a second. “But I really think that this time is different!”

“Then you should go and check with your instruments and let me go back to my project.” The older affirmed and the other got up, annoyed.

“And that’s exactly what I’m going to do!”

Jaehyun went to his room stomping his feet while Sangyeon shook his head in disbelief. As extravagant and loud as Jaehyun could be, he was also very easy to poke in the right direction. He, then, went back to his bedroom and his project, already dreading the few hours he still had that day to try to finish the chapter he had been trying to write for days.

At the same time, Haknyeon just wanted to bang his head on his wall. He had been reading the same paragraph for hours and he couldn’t remember what it was about. It was still early in the evening and the pile of books on his side meant that he had to finish this soon and move on to the next subject. And then revise all the bones in a human arm since professor Song quizzes students about at the beginning of every class.

Why did he decide to study Medicine again? Oh, right, he wanted to help people. He wanted to heal them. Dropping his head over the book, Hakneyon sighed, regretting how much he had idealized medical school. It was supposed to be fun besides the hard work. It shouldn’t be so soul-crushing.

Every knew becoming a doctor was hard and he wasn’t an exception. He had always been aware his dream of being a pediatrician would take a lot of time and effort to become real. He had four years of university, two of specialization, and then probably two or three more of doing anything he could to gain experience before landing an actual job in a hospital or clinic. Still, reality hit him hard.

He hadn’t expected the huge amount of reading and memorizing he had to do or the crazy hours he had to put in order to achieve it. Nor the gruesome stories or classes he had to get through. At first, he thought a few of his professors just wanted to scare the weak out but then he had gone through his first autopsy, and well, reality hit him hard.

Haknyeon’s phone started to ring and he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. Without changing his position he took Sunwoo’s video call. At least, he had someone in his life that never failed him.

“Oh, shit, you’re studying…” The younger said from the phone screen, in a similar position from Haknyeon, half lying in math textbooks. Oh, how he missed studying something simple as math.

“It’s okay. I think I need a break.” He reassured his boyfriend, who smiled softly. “Do you need help?”

“No, I got this. Eric didn’t let me nap in class, so I actually paid attention this time.” Sunwoo raised his head, giving him the cute head shake he did when he was proud of himself, which made the older giggle. Oh, he was so whipped. It wasn’t even funny.

“You’re so cute, Sun-yah.” Haknyeon pouted, suddenly wishing the other was there in his dorm with him.

“You’re more…” The high school student got the same expression on his face, feeling the same way. With his crazy school schedule and Hakneyon’s life as a new Medical student, they couldn’t see each other in person as much as they wanted.

“You look extra cuddly today, though.” He whined, relieved that Subin hadn’t come back to the dorm yet or he would have to suffer under his (mostly) light-hearted teasing.

“Oh, hyung, don’t say stuff like that! You have no idea how much I want to kiss you right now.” Sunwoo said and then covered his mouth with both hands. “Shit, sorry.”

“It’s okay, Sun…” Haknyeon finally raised his head and nodded to make sure the younger understand he was fine.

“Still, I… Fuck!” The younger cussed and started to light hit his own head. “Fuck, why am I such a shitty boyfriend?”

“Hey, hey…” The Medical student called out before Sunwoo went into one of his self-deprecating moods. “It’s okay, Sun. I’m okay. Look at me.” The younger stopped and stared at him from the phone. “I’ve been thinking about it.” Sunwoo's mouth dropped and Haknyeon giggled again. “I’m not sure, but I think I can try. Probably soon.”

“Are you serious right now?” He asked and the older only nodded. “When did it happen?”

“Right now…” Haknyeon admitted, embarrassed. Sunwoo looked so cute that night that it made him wonder how it would actually be to kiss him. To feel his chapped lips on his.

“Shit, I think I’m popping up a boner now…” The high school student said and made a defeated face.

“I…” Haknyeon started, trying his best not to laugh but failing miserably. Sunwoo’s distressed face and his ability to just let out what he was thinking without noticing were enough to raise Haknyeon’s mood at most times. “...don’t think I can help you with that.” He completed laughing so hard tears were falling down his eyes.

“I know, I know…” Sunwoo almost screamed, in a panicked manner. “I wasn’t trying to pressure into anything or… I just thought and said and….”

“I know, Sun. Don’t worry.” The older assured him, still giggling a bit. “Thank you for all of this, though. I was really needing a distraction.” He smiled brightly at his boyfriend, who did the same, even though he was red from embarrassment.

“Still…”

“We have different needs and we are figuring it out.” Haknyeon smiled again.

“I know…” Sunwoo started, in a small voice. “I just don’t want to disrespect you and your time.” The older nodded through the phone. “And I’m okay if we never kiss or have sex. I’m just happy you like me back and want to be with me.”

“Thank you, Sun…” It didn’t matter how many times the younger said that, he always got a bit emotional about it. “And it’s not that is never going to happen. I just don’t feel the same need as you about those things.”

“I know, babe.” The younger gave Haknyeon a small smile and the want came back. To let himself experiment kissing his boyfriend.

The call ended not long after, but the Medical student still couldn’t concentrate back on his studies. Never before, not even after he had understood he was falling for Sunwoo, the idea of kissing someone had crossed his mind.

It actually had been quite strange, liking Sunwoo. From a very young age, Haknyeon knew he wasn’t like most people. He didn’t obsess over soulmates and romance and, for him and his friends, that was okay. His three oldest friends had always been so focused on other stuff, like school and playing around in the playground, that he didn’t feel like he didn’t belong. Then puberty hit them and it was clear that even in that small group, everyone had a different experience.

The first to come out had been Juyeon. Haknyeon was around 14 and he met the others around a few trees by the slide in the playground. He said that he liked boys and girls and everyone was okay with it. And nothing changed for a while.

Then Sangyeon appeared dating a girl in his class a few months later and they were all okay with it. Nothing changed between them and five weeks later the oldest had broken up with her because their relationship was getting in the way of his studies.

But that brief teen romance shook something inside of Haknyeon. He noticed how much he didn’t want to kiss anyone. How much he thought people were pretty or attractive but never wanted to do anything about it. And, for some reason, he felt like only Jaehyun would understand him.

So when he gathered the four boys a year later in the same place Juyeon had come out as bisexual to say he was asexual, the youngest understood why he felt that connection with Jaehyun. The older was the same as him.

Or that was what he thought until he met Sunwoo. It had been in that crazy party Juyeon had introduced his childhood friends to his new university friends (and their friends) that Haknyeon saw that pretty boy with (still) black hair and big eyes and basically couldn’t take him from his mind.

That had never happened before, and all of his friends thought it was weird how he always seemed interested in Sunwoo or tagged along with Juyeon or Jaehyun when he heard they would be hanging out with him. But who actually opened his eyes was Sangyeon.

After a few conversations with Jaehyun, Haknyeon had also come out to them as asexual and, again, they were all okay with it. So when their oldest friend sat with him to ask if he had a crush on Sunwoo, he just denied it. People like him didn’t develop crushes, right? He never had one before. However, from everything he had heard, read, or watched about romance, it seemed like one.

It took him months, however, for him to talk to Jaehyun about. The older had already noticed everything and had other magical stuff to tell him too, but Haknyeon was just relieved he reassured him that it didn't invalidate his identity. And explained to him that sexual and romantic attraction could be something different for some people.

Getting together with Sunwoo was another story. They pinned for a while and then became close friends. And then talked about Haknyeon being asexual and what a relationship between them could actually be. It isn’t an understatement that all their friends were already very frustrated with them when they had actually started to officially date. Even if their relationship didn’t look like most. But the important thing was that they were happy and by each other’s side.

The Medical student went to bed almost at sunrise, with his focus slipping away from his books to Sunwoo lips in his mind. At least his morning classes had been canceled and he could sleep in until his laboratory class in the afternoon.

Not wanting to have a big meal, Haknyeon decided to have some coffee before class. If Sangyeon was working, then he could talk to someone about this new development in his relationship. Well, Jaehyun would be annoyed if he wasn’t the first, but Sangyeon wouldn’t comment on it with him.

So he got to the coffee shop around lunchtime but only saw that new tall guy with faded red hair behind the counter. He looked bored, but his face lit up when the Medical student got closer and smiled, but it wasn’t the normal polite client service one he saw on his face the few times he had been served by him.

“Sangyeon hyung isn’t here right now.” The barista said as soon as Haknyeon finished his order. “Well, he is in the back, but he isn't working right now…” The guy giggled like something was happening. “You’re one of his friends, right?” He confirmed and the other continued talking. “I’ve seen you around a few times talking to him. But, you know, I don’t know much about him. We have been working together for a while but don’t talk much. And I’m kind of dying to know if…”

Mingi, the barista, got interrupted by a door opening up behind him. He turned around and bit his lip like he was trying no to laugh while observing Chanhee coming out of the back. The Magic student stared right at Haknyeon from the door and his face became the same shade of pink his hair used to be.

“Hak, what are you doing here?” He asked in a high pitched voice.

“Getting coffee...” The younger said, confused. What was Chanhee doing here? He studied quite far and well, he looked like he was coming out of the back of the store. Had he started working there too? A deeper voice came from behind him and the Magic student finally moved. But before he came out from behind the counter, he turned around and whispered something to Sangyeon.

“Hey, Hak? I thought you had classes in the morning.” The oldest greeted him while finishing to tie his apron. But the Medical student wasn’t paying attention to him, but to Chanhee trying to make himself smaller while coming to stand beside him.

“They got canceled…” He started and turned to Sangyeon, who was smiling like nothing was happening. Haknyeon then opened his mouth again to ask the obvious question, but the oldest beat him to it.

“Oh, Chanhee came to apply a relaxing potion to my shoulder. You know I don’t trust Jaehyun with it.” The Magic student nodded effusively while Mingi turned around trying not to laugh again.

“Well, no one trusts Jaehyun hyung with potions…” Haknyeon said, laughing. That actually made sense. Sangyeon had fallen from the jungle gym when he was eight and from time to time it would turn a bit stiff.

“I should go…” Chanhee said suddenly, smiling embarrassed at Haknyeon. “And hyung, remember what I told you, okay?” Sangyeon nodded and the Magic student left, waving to them.

“Mingi…” He called the other barista, who was still looking like he wanted to laugh. “You can take your break now.” The other nodded and waved to Haknyeon while disappearing in the back. “Did you order already?” Sangyeon asked him and went to get his coffee.

“It was very nice, right? For Chanhee hyung to come all the way here to help you with your shoulder.” The younger said, sitting by the counter.

“Yeah, it was…” He answered with his back to Haknyeon to manage the coffee machine.

“I didn’t know you two were this close.”

“We aren’t,” Sangyeon said, in a final tone, putting the order in front of him. “He really just came by to help me out with it.” He put his hand on his shoulder and turned a bit to show how his shoulder was still a bit stiff. “And during the whole time he was in silence and it was quite awkward.” A strange smile went through the older lips. “The only thing he could talk about was Kevin’s new crush.”

“Kevin hyung has a new crush?” The younger got surprised and started to ask Sangyeon about it, but he didn’t know the details. Chanhee’s visit got forgotten just like that.

Because he tried to insist with Sangyeon for details about Kevin’s crush, Haknyeon ended up late to class. It made him forget Sunwoo, Sangyeon, Chanhee, and Kevin. And the dissection he had to do that afternoon was so complicated that he forced himself to pass by the library to find the references the professor had suggested them to read for next time. 

On his way in, he met Younghoon leaving by chance. He was another of Juyeon’s new friends, even though he had been around for longer. The now Law student had managed to get a scholarship to study at an elite high school and that was where he met Younghoon.

Even if they came from different worlds, the two boys became closer rather quickly. Being by Younghoon’s side helped Juyeon to fit in a school where social status was essential and Juyeon provided something Younghoon rarely had before: deep and profound friendship based on mutual liking and support.

What was also what he found on the boys’ other friends after he met them and he was particularly fond of Haknyeon. He was cute and bright and being around him always made Younghoon’s day better.

“Hey, hyung!” The younger called and Younghoon came closer, smiling.

“Hey, Hak. It’s been a while since I saw you.” He laughed after saying. “Is Sunwoo keeping you that busy?”

“No, hyung…” He blushed while the older still laughed. “It's med school.”

“Right…” Younghoon laughed again, feeling really happy. It had been a while since he saw any of his friends had started his internship at his family’s company. “Hey, I'm meeting up with Juyeon for dinner. Do you want to come?”

“Oh…” Haknyeon pouted, devastated by having to pass on free food. “I can’t. I have three chapters to read and another two to revise for tomorrow.” The older frowned, overwhelmed just by hearing it. “But thanks for the invite.”

“No problem…” He smiled sympathetically at the younger. He knew shouldn’t keep Haknyeon for much longer but he didn’t want to say goodbye yet. “Any news?” The Medical student widened his eyes and smiled excitedly.

“I just heard Kevin hyung has a new crush!”

“That’s brilliant!” Younghoon responded, also getting excited. Call him an old fashion romantic, but he loved hearing about people falling in love. Since his own love life was a bit more complicated than most.

They talked for a few more minutes and the older went to the barbecue place where he had agreed to meet Jueyon while Haknyeon entered the library. Younghoon felt content to finally have time to hang out with his friends again. He missed the random gossip they passed around, the teasing and comfort they all bonded over, the ordinary things he could do with them. Nothing had a business deal behind it, nothing was planned and executed. It was just normal life.

Still, a shadow had passed through him. Coming back meant seeing Changmin and Chanee again and he wasn’t ready for it. Not when he had fallen for both of them.

Juyeon was already at the restaurant when Younghoon got there. They exchanged silent greetings that didn’t match how happy they were from seeing each other. And they stayed there for most of the night, catching up and eating meat. Everything that had happened to them and their friends in the last weeks was talked about, and Younghoon just felt that mostly bright feeling he had been feeling since leaving his office at the company the day before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys,  
> I'm really sorry for these two weeks without an update. I got a bit overwhelmed about some stuff in life and wasn't in the best mind to write.  
> But I'm back and with the final introduction of the characters. From now on, the plot moves hahahhaa.  
> I still want to thank everyone for the hits, comments, and kudos during this time. It helps me to remember that other people also care about the stories I want to tell.  
> Anyway, thank you so much and see you next week.  
> I'm doing my best to keep the schedule.
> 
> If there are any errors and misguided descriptions about the character's sexual or gender identities, please don't hesitate to correct me in the comments.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob is confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is another chapter. Enjoy!

Jacob was confused. Actually, confused was an understatement. He was completely lost and it was all because of Kevin Moon. After that first introduction, their warning on the music club, and spending two weeks running into them everywhere, Kevin had sat beside him in a meeting and tried to make small talk. Jacob was so caught off guard, especially because he thought Kevin didn’t want to have anything to do with him, that he couldn’t even get three words together without stammering. And in return, the Design student giggled a bit and touched his arms.

It was too much for Jacob. He was still getting used to their appearance and always made the effort, both in the club and in his mind, to refer to Kevin with the right pronouns, but something was still unsettling about the other. And the soft looks they would sometimes throw at him across a corridor or the cafeteria didn’t help (neither the knowing ones he had noticed on the second meeting when Kevin sat by his side).

Then, there was also the fact that he couldn’t stop thinking about Kevin. First, he thought that it was because of their gender identity, which made him go into a research spree about non-binary people. Jacob really didn’t want to be that asshole who couldn’t be around the other just because they were different. But after that, he kept on thinking about the Design student.

Jacob wondered where he had learned to put on makeup like that because Kevin’s eyes always looked more bright than everybody else's and their lips were the pinkest he had ever seen. He also wondered how they had developed such an amazing fashion sense, since everything the other wore looked amazing on them, and Jacob, well, had no style whatsoever.  And once he even imagined how it would be to touch Kevin’s hair. It looked so healthy and soft that for a split second he entertained the sleepy part of his brain that was imagining his fingers going through the longish black strands.

Lay down on his bed that night, the Psychology student opened his eyes in shock. Because one thing was being curious about Kevin and their experience with their identity. That thought, however, felt like something else. Something that Jacob was too scared to go even near.

“Hey, Jacob.” He heard that mixed tone greeting Kevin had started to give him as soon as he got inside the music club room. It was a bit early for that day’s meeting, but the room was always open and Jacob had already grown used to going there to wait for classes or when he didn’t want to be around his course colleagues.

“Hey, Kevin…” The Psychology student greeted back, still surprised. “I didn’t think that anyone would be here.”

“Oh, my last class was canceled and I didn’t have anything else to do.” Kevin smiled from where they were sitting behind the keyboard.

“I see…” Jacob scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. “Well, I will leave you to practice, then.” He turned around to leave.

“You don’t need to go!” The Design student said, rushed and when Jacob turned back, they had gotten up and pushed the keyboard a bit while doing it. “I was just strumming away.”

“Well, I don’t want to bother you…”

“You’re not!” Kevin exclaimed and then turned their head away when the Psychology student stared at them. For a second before they turned back, Jacob thought he saw a faded pink color creeping on their neck. “I’m bored and having company is better than playing random notes.”

Not sure of what he could say, the Psychology student went over to the corner where he usually sat during meetings and put his backpack and guitar there. He ignored Kevin following his every move until sitting down on their side. The other smiled at him and Jacob gave them a small smile back. Up close, Kevin was more on the cute side than in the attractive one he was used to seeing from far away.

“Y’know, I really liked that improv you did with Mark last meeting. Bazzi, right?” They started making Jacob's jaw drop. It took him a while to nod, which made Kevin giggle. “I couldn’t hear properly, so I wasn’t sure. But it sounded nice.”

“Thanks…” Jacob said, in a small voice, feeling his ears burn. He wasn’t ready for what was happening, whatever it was. “The arrangement you played on the first meeting blew my mind.” He admitted, not sure why. “I really like Lukas Graham.” Kevin’s face lit up and Jacob wondered why the world seemed brighter.

“Dude, me too!” They exclaimed very excitedly and started rambling about their favorite songs, not only by him but also by other artists. The way Kevin was talking captivated Jacob so much that suddenly he was also sharing a few of his favorites songs.

Neither of them noticed the time pass or the rest of the club coming in. It was only when Soyeon interrupted them to start the meeting that Kevin and Jacob stopped talking. The Psychology student went back to his seat, but there was a lingering feeling that made both of them exchange looks during the meeting.

It all made Kevin want to take the next step with Jacob. They weren't sure how the other would react if they made their intentions clear, but they still wanted to do it. It needed to be something not threatening, like meeting up for coffee or ice cream, and the Design student really wanted to invite him that day. But they had to run as soon as Soyeon dismissed them since Eric and Jaehyun had demanded to meet up with them that evening to talk about Kevin’s new crush.

They weren’t sure how their whole friend group had heard about Jacob in just a few days and they did think that calling it a crush, then, was a bit much. Now, however, most of them were curious about this new boy who had grabbed Kevin’s attention.

So, with just a small wave, the Design student said goodbye to Jacob and ran all the way to the coffee shop where Sangyeon worked. It was already packed with their friends and it was a good thing that the oldest, as assistant manager, would usually take the night shift by himself. Kevin couldn’t imagine if the other barista’s friends were there too. They were a loud bunch.

“Okay, I get Eric and Jaehyung hyung.” They said as soon as they got in, looking around. “Even Younghoon hyung and Haknyeon. But Sunwoo and Juyeon?” The nine boys looked briefly at Kevin.

“I’m here to see my boyfriend!” Sunwoo protested, clinging to Haknyeon who was sitting beside him on the counter. Eric and Chanhee cooed at him, who closed up his expression but didn’t let go of the other boy.

“Younghoon hyung forced me to come.” Juyeon said, without any emotion.

“It’s just been a while since we all hung out together!” Younghoon exclaimed from the table where he was sitting with Changmin and Jaehyun.

“Hyung is right.” Chanhee commented from beside Eric.

“So y’all used me as an excuse to meet up?” Kevin said, going closer to the counter where Sangyeon was already making their latte. The oldest knew everyone’s order by heart and sometimes could even guess if they wanted to try something different. His attention and dedication to his friends was something that surprised Kevin when they first met, especially because he was the perfect example of traditional masculinity and was also referred to as the token straight friend of their group.

After the oldest handed them their coffee, Kevin sat on the counter next to Juyeon, where they could be closer to most of the boys and talk to all of them. It was something they hadn’t noticed they missed, but being around everyone felt like coming home. And for an international student like them, already in their second year of being away from their family and childhood friends, it had this even bigger impact.

“Ok, start spilling it!” Chanhee said, crossing eyes with them from over the counter. “You’re being extra secretive about this boy and even I’m curious now.”

“Yeah, you usually don’t shut up about people you like and you only told me about him that night!” Changmin exclaimed, sounding frustrated.

“It’s been two weeks and I don’t know anything about it, hyung!” Eric complained in the same tone.

“Guys, give Kevin a bit of space. They just got here.” Sangyeon intervened, but Jaehyun cut in, louder.

“I need more details, Kev. With what I know, I can’t make an accurate prediction.”

“Oh, for fuck sake, hyung. Are you seriously trying to shaman yourself into this?” The younger Magic student turned to him, annoyed but Jaehyun ignored him, keeping his expectant stare at Kevin.

“What are you trying to predict, hyung?” They asked him, curious.

“Oh, you know, if this person can reciprocate your feelings.” Kevin raised an interested eyebrow to Jaehyun, who noticed and got even more excited. “If this relationship can work in the long term.” Sunwoo and Haknyeon laughed while Chanhee rolled his eyes at the same time Juyeon turned around on his stool to exchange looks with Sangyeon and Eric, Younghoon and Changmin listened to Jaehyun with the same interest the Design student had. “What kind of magical bond you two can have.” The oldest Magic student, then, noticing the focus on him, finished nonchalantly. “Stuff like that.” Most of the boys laughed while Jaehyun smirked.

“You’re not taking him seriously, right?” Juyeon asked Kevin in a whisper after turning back to the conversation and seeing Changmin and Younghoon asking questions excitedly to Jaehyun while Chanhee tried to contradict every answer he gave to them. The Design student turned to him with a pensive expression on their face.

“I don’t know.” They shrugged their shoulders. “It would be nice if hyung could predict any of those things, but I want to let things happen naturally. If anything is going to happen at all.” The Law student nodded and both turned around to observe Sangyeon serving a customer who had come in during their conversation. Kevin, however, didn’t miss the glance Juyeon had given in Eric’s direction. Or the glance the youngest gave him back.

“Got tired of Jaehyun?” The oldest asked them after the customer left. It brought the attention of the other boys sitting around the counter and they all turned to him.

“Well, he’s more a showman than anything else…” Sunwoo let out in a small voice and looked around to see if Jaehyun had heard it, but he was so entranced in his conversation with Changmin and Younghoon that it was obvious that he hadn’t.

“Well, that he is.” Chanhee agreed. “It fits his shamanic persona.”

“Hyung, you’re just bitter because you can’t predict the future like Jaehyun hyung.” Eric came on his soulmate’s defense.

“Well, Eric…” He started, turning to the youngest. “I’m not interested in predicting the future. Divination is such a suggestible field in magic…” Chanhee took a sip of his iced tea. “It works more in a way of opening peoples’ possibilities to them than actually predicting an outcome from observation and measurement… It’s not the kind of work I want to do.” Eric nodded and, after a few seconds of silence, they all looked at Kevin.

“What?” They asked, self-conscious.

“Come on, give us something!” Haknyeon claimed.

“At least, a name.”

“No!” Kevin said, looking at Eric. “You guys are going to stalk him and freak him out.” Confusion appeared in all of their faces.

“In the almost one year that I’ve known you, Kev, that has never been a worry for you.” Chanhee started, making Sunwoo nod.

“I know…” They responded. “It’s just that he is shy and reserved.” The Design student then sighed. “Today was the first time we actually had a real conversation and I don’t want to scare him out again.”

“What do you mean?” Sangyeon asked, confused and Kevin turned to him.

“Well, we started with the wrong foot and it took him two weeks to be comfortable enough around me to say more than hi.” They answered earnestly, but then their gaze turned soft. “But he is really taking my pronouns seriously and I can see his effort.”

“Is he…” Sunwoo started to say, but Haknyeon lightly elbowed his stomach to stop him.

“No…” Kevin perched up while saying it. “I think he never met someone like me before and didn’t know how to act.”

“Are you sure?” Juyeon asked him, putting a hand on their shoulder and they nodded. “Okay, I trust your judgment. But if this guy does anything to you, we will take care of it.” Kevin wanted to laugh, but Sangyeon and Sunwoo were agreeing with Juyeon.

“Thanks, guys…” The Design student said a bit choked on. “I don’t think it is going to be necessary, though.”

“If it is, we’re going to kick his ass!” Eric exclaimed, making everyone else laugh. It caught the other boy's attention.

“What are you all talking about?” Changmin asked, getting up and hooking up his arms around Kevin.

“We’re going to kick hyung’s new boyfriend if he says anything transphobic.” Sunwoo answered with a sadistic smile on his lips.

“He’s not my boyfriend!” Kevin exclaimed, embarrassed.

“Put me in the list too.” Jaehyun said, also getting up to be closer to them while Younghoon observed the scene. It was nice for him, seeing his friends together laughing and making up a crazy plan to beat up a guy that, from what Kevin was saying, seemed like he wouldn't hurt a fly. At the same time, the way Changmin was nuzzling his nose on their neck made something dark grow in his stomach. Younghoon looked away and met eyes with Chanhee, who offered him a small smile. He mirrored the younger expression, feeling that sensation disappear.

They stayed at the coffee shop until closing time and while they cuddled with Changmin that night, Kevin remembered how moved he felt by their friends. None of them even hesitated to offer themselves to protect the Design student and that was one of those things that made Kevin appreciate every single one of them even more.

Their reactions had been all varied but tremendously accepting of Kevin’s gender identity. A few didn’t even bat an eye about it, while others had a few questions (they were the least intrusive that they had heard in their life) and they even had to come out to Juyeon, since he, somehow, didn’t assume anything about Kevin when they met. It was a fun scene that always brought a smile to their lips with the Law student hearing they say they were non-binary and, after a few seconds of blown up eyes, just explaining that gender is the last thing he notices in a person.

Jacob suddenly popped in his head while they thought about it and in a way, the Psychology student seemed to fit with their group friend. Ever since the first meeting in the club, they had heard Jacob refer to them with the right pronouns and, after he stopped running away from Kevin, it genuinely looked like he was still adjusting to them.

So they decided to take their shot and become even closer to the other. Because, even if it could break their heart, they wanted Jacob in their life. Even if he couldn’t be in a romantic relationship with Kevin, like they had started to fantasize about it at every awake moment, they still wanted to be their friend. It didn’t make a lot of sense to Kevin, but it was like something bigger was telling them that they couldn’t let Jacob go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello,  
> I hope the chapter came out well and you guys had fun reading it.  
> The plot is starting to develop and I can't wait to take things further.  
> Anyway, thank you all for all the kudos and comments.  
> See you next week.
> 
> If there are any errors and misguided descriptions about the character's sexual or gender identities, please don't hesitate to correct me in the comments.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob and Kevin become friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit late, but it's here. I hope you enjoy it!

Kevin knew they shouldn’t do this. But they also didn’t want to let fate decide if or when they were going to see Jacob before the next club meeting. It wasn’t impossible, they usually could get a glimpse of the other in corridors. This time, however, the Design student really didn’t want to leave it to chance.  So they sent the most casual text they could write in their anxious state of mind asking Soyeon about her friend Miyeon. Kevin was aware of her because Sangyeon had briefly dated a younger Psychology student, who ended up being friends with their club president. A few minutes later the answer came with just a ‘What do you want with her?’ They breathed deeply before responding that they only wanted to know if they were in the same classes as Jacob and if she knew him. There was no response from Soyeon and Kevin went to class feeling a bit annoyed. 

They were extremely aware that their plan of trying to know more about Jacob through Soyeon and Miyeon wasn’t flawless. It was the exact opposite of it. Their relationship with the club president wasn’t the most harmonious. She thought and made sure to show it, that Kevin was too opinionated and expansive for her taste while they disliked her straightforwardness. In the prior year, they had had a few fallouts during club meetings for divergent opinions about, well, everything. So it was a huge surprise when they left their classroom later that morning and found Soyeon there.

“I asked unnie about him.” She said as soon as Kevin got closer to her. “She said he is quiet and kind to everybody but isn’t close to anyone. He also doesn't talk in class unless the professor asks him something.” Soyeon thought a bit before continuing. “And that she’s never seen him hang out around campus.”

“Oh, okay…”

“I wasn’t finished.” The club president deadpanned and Kevin swallowed what they were saying. “Miyeon unnie had no idea Jacob-ssi had started at the club and she knows everything about everyone on her course.”

“Did you finish now?” They asked, a bit annoyed about being cut before but still grateful for the information.

“I did, but…” Soyeon breathed deeply, sounding less threatening. “Jacob-ssi seems a bit fragile and, even though we don’t see eye to eye in most situations, I’ve seen you moping around with your heart broken before, Kevin. And I’ve seen the way you look at him during the meeting, so be careful.”

“Oh…” The Design student took a few seconds to recover from the shock of having the Music student being almost nice to them. “Thanks, Soyeon-ah. I’ll be careful.”

“Good!” She exclaimed, going back to her normal tone. “Because I don’t want you making things weird in the club because things didn’t work out with Jacob-ssi.”

“Don’t worry about it, boss…” Kevin used the mocking voice they used when Soyeon gave those kinds of warnings to the club and, with a roll of eye and a small smile, the girl left.

The Design student went to their next class thinking about the information Soyeon had shared. If Jacob didn’t have any friends at university and wouldn’t hang out around after classes, their best chance to find him was during lunch, probably at the cafeteria. At the same time, it was also kind of a sad picture, imagining someone like Jacob being this alone.

They couldn’t imagine someone who apparently didn’t have any social life. Someone who wouldn’t or couldn’t hang out with anyone. Kevin could almost see it: Jacob alone waiting in the corridor for classes to start or sitting to eat with anyone who would invite him just to not be lonely. It hurt their heart and made his desire to get closer to the other stronger and less selfish. 

While walking to the Psychology building after their second class, the Design student remembered every time they had seen Jacob around campus. He was always alone, going from one place to the other like he wasn’t allowed to stay and enjoy something there. Kevin had interpreted that as him running away from them, but maybe that was something else. Maybe he just did that naturally. Maybe if they were Mark, Jacob would have just said hi and left right after it.

As soon as Kevin sat foot in the cafeteria the exact image they had been picturing came to life. It wasn’t hard to spot Jacob sitting with a few other students at a table at the corner. The boy wouldn’t talk unless someone talked to him first and seemed a bit disconnected from the conversation as a whole.  A small pain passed through them and Kevin didn’t let the images of their first few weeks in Korea come to their mind. It wasn’t time to load on the past. Breathing deeply, they went to the table and gave Jacob their best smile.

“Hey, Jacob…” They gave him the singing greeting they liked to give the other because it brought his whole focus to Kevin. “Fancying seeing you here!”

“Kevin!” Jacob exclaimed, completely out of guard. The Design student had taken him from a deep daze and he looked around only to see his colleagues watching the scene with interest. No one had ever seen someone talk to Jacob like this before. Nor Jacob responding. He looked back at Kevin, who was still smiling brightly with their full focus on him like they were purposely ignoring everything else. “What are you doing here?” Jacob’s tone wasn’t aggressive, more surprised than anything else and it made the other’s smile become more like a smirk.

“I came to find you. Can we eat lunch together?” Kevin asked, finding a middle ground between innocence and suggestive, mostly because they couldn’t help themselves around Jacob. The boy took a while to respond by how taken aback he was, and the Design student kept on ignoring his colleagues, who were starting to whisper between themselves.

After thinking a bit, Jacob nodded to Kevin, taking his untouched food and bowed a small apology to the people on his table before leaving with the other. He accompanied Kevin while they bought their food and the two of them sat at a small table at the other corner of the cafeteria.

Now that they were alone with Jacob, Kevin felt a bit anxious. They hadn't planned exactly what they would say to him and at every second that passed the weight of the silence between them could be felt more clearly.

“Kevin?” Jacob called softly, not bearing seeing the usually super confident Design student suddenly looking so vulnerable. The other looked up to him and saw a calming smile on his face.

“You’re studying the right thing.” They let out without thinking. Jacob’s eyes widened in surprise and they started to regret saying that.

“Why do you say that?” The Psychology student asked, curious but still calm and Kevin hurried to answer him.

“It’s just that your smile right now was exactly the kind of smile a therapist would give and I thought that you would be perfect for it. And then I remembered you do study Psychology and that’s a perfect fit and…”

“Now you are rambling?” Jacob offered, with an amused smile and Kevin laughed, letting out the air they didn’t know they were keeping.

“Yeah…” They answered, chuckling nervously.

“It’s okay,” Jacob said back, ignoring the sudden thought of how cute Kevin looked embarrassed. “Some people tend to do that.” He gave the other the same calming smile from before. “And thank you for the compliment. Sometimes I think that I don’t have what it takes to be a good therapist.” Jacob's smile became a bit sad and then nervous. He never had shared that detail with anyone.

“Really? Because you look like the exact type of person who I would want to be my therapist.” The Design student said, reassuring. “From what I’ve seen from you at the club, you’re calm, nice, and patient. Who wouldn’t want their therapist to be like that?” The answer made Jacob laugh a bit. He had no idea of what Kevin wanted with him or what he could expect from them but definitely, it wasn’t this.

“Thank you, Kevin. It's very kind of you to say that.” He said while averting the other’s eyes while a warm feeling crept up his neck.

“It’s the truth, buddy.” The Design student said back, looking down at their food, feeling embarrassed again.  The silence that fell between them wasn’t heavy as the one from the beginning of their conversation. It was comfortable, or at least as comfortable as it could be for two people getting to know each other. Both of them got lost in thought while eating until Kevin looked up and saw Jacob observing them with his head still down.

“You’re wondering why I came here, right?” They asked and the Psychology student raised his head with his eyes widened again.

“A bit…” Jacob answered in a small voice, worried that would upset Kevin. To his surprise, the Design student smiled a bit, like a small child who had been caught doing something they shouldn't.

“Well, I was thinking about our conversation yesterday and wanted to know if you want to jam someday?” Kevin gave him an anxious and excited smile. “With me, I mean. Maybe we can even do a small duet to present at a meeting if you want to.” Jacob’s eyes got even more wide, increasing their restlessness about the situation. “But only if you want. If you don’t, it’s okay. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable or anything like that. I just thought it would be a good idea since we have similar tastes and....”

“Kevin…” The Psychology student called, cutting the other out. “It’s okay. I think it’s a good idea.” He offered a small smile, which made them breathe relieved. “And you don’t make me uncomfortable.” This time was Kevin’s eyes that got wide from surprise and Jacob made himself smaller because of it. “I’m sorry about what happened when we first met. I’ve never met someone like you before and I let my misguided bias towards gender influence that. I swear I wasn't trying to purposely misgender you, but I still did.” His tone was very serious and they felt the sincerity of it.

“It’s fine.” They guaranteed. “After thinking a bit, I imagined that was the case, and you haven’t done it since…” Kevin smiled at him trying to ignore their heartbeat increase. “So it’s all forgiven.” Jacob nodded, looking surprised. “And I’m happy you want to jam with me. I think we can have some fun with it.”

Jacob’s smile grew while Kevin finished talking, relieved that the Design student had been able to forgive him. He wouldn’t know what to do if they couldn’t. And his smile made Kevin’s one grow too, glad that the other wasn’t uncomfortable with them and was open enough to let them try to get close to him.

Just before they left for their classes, the two students agreed to meet up for an hour after their afternoon classes ended every day in the next week. It was exactly what Kevin wanted, an opportunity to know Jacob better and it made the Psychology student curious (and a bit happy) that someone was showing interest in him and his music.

During the whole weekend, Kevin felt like they were flowing in the clouds. And even having to stay in studying during the whole time, that conversation with Jacob kept coming back to their mind bringing a shy smile to their lips. Changmin, in the free time he had from practice in the dorm, noticed but didn’t comment. If Kevin wanted to tell him about it, they would. He wasn’t going to pry into it, for his own sake.

Something similar was happening to Jacob. His thoughts were stuck at the more frequent interactions he had with Kevin and a mix of anxiety and excitement settled in his stomach. He hadn’t felt so comfortable with anyone since his family had come from Canada to Korea at the beginning of his high school years to help out in a new congregation of their church.

He had to leave his two childhood friends behind and felt too self-conscious to try to get closer to anyone in the new country. At first, it seemed to be just the language barrier, since he couldn’t speak Korean very well when they moved there. With time, however, he understood that the confident part of him that was even a bit popular in school because he was on the basketball team stayed on the other side of the world.

And somehow Kevin had managed to break his walls down, making him share things about himself that nobody knew. Jacob wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was their confidence in their own skin. Maybe it was how, even with his initial slip-up, they were eager to welcome him to the club. Maybe it was just because of how easy it was to talk to the other.  Whatever reason it was, Jacob was determined to not let this chance pass by. He usually didn’t like thinking about it, but he missed having someone who knew a bit more about him than just the nice and shy façade he let out into the world. He missed having someone that wouldn’t judge him as just part of his church. Someone who would accept him for what he was.

Still, a big part of his brain was worried about who much he was already attached to Kevin. The Design student kept occupying a big part of his thoughts ever since they met and there were moments when his own mind scared him. So he tried his best to keep those thoughts or, sometimes even daydreams, out of his conscious mind.  What, actually, became harder at each minute Jacob passed with Kevin. During that week, the hours they took to be inside of the club’s room playing whatever they wanted passed all too quickly. The two students understood the other with just a few words and their synergy while playing was impressive.

Their tastes were very similar and, where it wasn’t, it became an opportunity for Jacob to experience new genres of music. From classical music to modern pop artists, Kevin listened to everything and could recommend music and artists that the Psychology student would immediately like. They would also talk a bit more about themselves since Kevin would keep on asking questions about Jacob at any given opportunity.

What was his favorite food? Why did he move to Korea? What did his parents do? What was his favorite subject at school? And at university? When he had started to play the guitar? These were a few of the questions Kevin asked and Jacob tried his best to answer. He was a bit embarrassed to admit how involved his family was at church or even that he still lived with them, but the Design student heard attentively and without judgment, just making a light-hearted joke here and there to break the seriousness of a few of the conversations.

And they would also talk about themselves. Kevin could talk extensively about their interests and life and, while listening to them, Jacob felt almost entranced. Their voice was soothing, their gestures fit whatever they were talking about and their eyes shined while his lips moved, like every single word that came out of them had a specific emotion attached to them.

As a Psychology student, Jacob felt curious and attracted to that amazing person that seemed to live every minute of their life with an intensity he couldn’t even fathom. But something else was also happening and he didn’t have a word to describe. It was like a magnet pulling him closer and closer.  And when Kevin sat behind his keyboard, even if it was just to play around with whatever melody was in their head, something warm spread inside of Jacob. If he usually felt entranced by them talking, when they played Jacob would become completely hypnotized. Sometimes he would get so into it that he would stop playing and the other had to call him out to get his attention.

It all felt like progress to Kevin. Jacob seemed a lot more relaxed with them and by the time of the next club meeting the Psychology student had abandoned his seat at the other side of the room to sit with them. Soyeon saw that happening and gave them a knowing look, but Kevin was trying very hard not to get their expectations too high. It was already too much with their own mind convincing themselves that Jacob would blush every time they touched his arm.

By the second week of their jamming sessions, Kevin couldn’t stop themself anymore. It was at that time that Jacob would say that he needed to go and they really wanted to spend more time with him. So they let out without noticing it. Without thinking about the numerous scenarios where it could go wrong.

“Do you want to have dinner with me?” The question made Jacob raise his gaze from the screen of his phone. The exact one he had looked to see if it was already time for him to leave.

“You want to have dinner with me?” He asked back, not believing Kevin. The Design student had an anxious expression on their face and their cheeks were starting to get a pinkish color. Jacob only received a nod in response since the other seemed like they couldn’t say a word.  The Psychology student's mind went blank and they only stared at each other for a few minutes of tense silence. Did Kevin actually want to hang out with him outside of club-related activities? From their expression, Jacob thought that was the most likely case, but something inside of him was still too caught off guard to notice that.

“Sure…” Jacob answered surprising both of them. Kevin looked like they were going to say something, but he continued. “Yeah, sure.” He then turned around, not wanting to face the other while he admitted. “I… just… need… to… call… my… parents…” His voice came out a lot weaker than he anticipated, and when he noticed Kevin getting closer to listen to him better, Jacob turned around and found the other already in his personal space. “...to say that I’m not coming home for dinner.” The Design student gave him a weird look and Jacob remembered that most university students didn’t have to warn their parents if they were going out or not. Well, most university students didn’t even live with their parents. “They think family dinners are very important and stuff. So we eat together every night!” He hurried to explain and Kevin made a small ‘oh’ with their lips without a sound.

“Okay, then.” They proceed to smile and Jacob felt his heart melt. Was Kevin really that understanding? That non-judgemental? Apparently, they were because they gave him space while organizing the room for Jacob to go outside the room to call his mother. She wasn’t very happy that he wasn’t coming home and started to ask questions about who Jacob was going to have dinner with. He only responded with an ominous ‘a friend’ and ended the call, knowing very well he would have to explain himself when he got home. But for that moment, he didn’t want to make Kevin wait longer.

After they finished organizing the room together and got their stuff, the two students left campus to go to a small family restaurant in the neighborhood. It was the first place Kevin had found out by himself in their first year and the bibimbap there reminded them of their mother’s, which was the only Korean dish she could actually make. They said that to Jacob, who smiled fondly and started to tell them about the things his own mother would cook for him and his father.

“Maybe one day you can invite me to eat with you guys…” Kevin commented while they were going inside the restaurant and Jacob gave them an empty look with a stranded smile.

“I don’t think that would be a good idea, Kevin.” He said softly after breathing deeply and proceeded to greet back the owner of the establishment.

“Why not?” The Design student asked after a few seconds of silence in which they sat down at one of the tables in the middle of the small restaurant. Jacob took a while to answer, putting a glass of water for himself and then another for Kevin.

“They wouldn’t be very welcoming…” He finally answered, in a very serious and somewhat angry tone. It was the first time Kevin had heard Jacob sound even remotely annoyed. “They are very conservative people.” And with those five words, the Design student could understand exactly what Jacob meant. And that made them appreciate Jacob even more.

“It must have been hard…” They took the glass of water and took a small sip. “Being around me, I mean.”

“No, Kevin!” Jacob raised his voice, worried and it made the other look straight at his face. “Well, after the first day at the club…” He stared at Kevin’s eyes, trying to find the right words. “You’re so easy to be around, Kevin. You have no idea.” The Psychology student offered a small smile, hoping he was sounding as sincere as he wanted to be. “In these few weeks I told you things about me I never told anyone, so don’t think I don’t want to be around you or that you’re making me uncomfortable or anything.” Kevin’s face melted into an embarrassed smile. “You’re the first person in this country that I could say is close to being my friend.”

The Design student had to maintain their smile while they swallowed the bitter taste that had appeared in their mouth. Without even trying anything, he had been put into the position of just friend. But Jacob kept on going, not noticing the other’s internal struggle, just relieved he could finally open up about his family to someone after so long. And Kevin listened attentively, becoming more and more aware by the second of how far away any romantic relationship was from them and Jacob. His family and church beliefs were beyond conservative and Kevin really thought there weren’t people who thought like that about people like them, their friends, and society in general.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys.  
> I'm sorry the chapter came out a few days later than it was supposed to. I hope it being a bit longer than usual is a bit of a consolation for it.  
> I'm still going to try my best to have the next chapter out on Friday.  
> And about Jacob's family beliefs, I'm going to get more open about it (and its influence on Jacob) as the plot progress, but for now, I can say that as much as society in this universe is accepting of same-gender relationships, the church Jacob's parents go to is the complete opposite. They also distort a lot of stuff from the magic in the universe they can, so, yeah. I don't want, however, to focus too much on these as is a subject that brings pain to a lot of people, I included. So it's mostly going to be Jacob getting free from all of its influence.  
> Anyway, I talked too much again.  
> See you soon.
> 
> If there are any errors and misguided descriptions about the character's sexual or gender identities, please don't hesitate to correct me in the comments.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob needs a friend and Kevin is there for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, we're back on track. Enjoy!

That night Kevin wandered around the university’s parking lot before going back to their dorm. Everything that Jacob had told them was heartbreaking and the Design student had the impression that it was just the tip of the iceberg. How could anyone survive in such a strict and conservative environment? Kevin really didn’t know. Their experience was so different from Jacob’s. Yes, their parents had huge expectations, but also always supported them in doing and being whatever they wanted. They only had to be the best they could at it.

But in Jacob’s case, it wasn’t just that. Their parents had an almost distorted view of reality and imposed that on their son. Kevin didn’t want to believe they were bad people, after all, they had raised someone as nice as Jacob. Their views, however, were so narrow and excluding that it just sounded horrible to the Design student.

After an hour outside, Kevin went to their dorm and found Changmin studying in his bed. The other only raised his gaze to them and they threw themselves into his embrace. Kevin didn’t say anything and Changmin made space on the bed to cuddle them. He didn’t ask questions, only lightly caressing their hair. A few minutes later the Performance Arts student took out his glasses to fully hug his roommate, knowing Kevin needed just that. Silent comfort.

The next morning, however, Changmin woke up alone. It was too early for Kevin to get up for their classes, but there was no sign of them in the dorm. He tried calling them, but there was no response. Sighing, the Performing Arts student got up and ready for the day thinking about why Kevin had been that way. He knew he would be going back to that during the whole day and just hoped they would tell him soon.

Meanwhile, the Design student was at the library trying to finish the essay they should have done the night before. But Kevin had become so emotionally drained that they had fallen asleep on Changmin’s arms still wearing the same clothes he had during the whole day. 

Not being able to sleep the whole night, they left the dorm just before sunrise. They had just taken a shower and went to the 24h coffee shop just outside campus so they wouldn’t start the day with an empty stomach. The library opened just as they finished eating and Kevin had been there since. And they would leave just in time for class.

The distraction of the essay and classes were welcomed by Kevin. They didn’t want to continuously think about Jacob’s family. But every time it happened, they would just get more impressed by the Psychology student. It would have been very easy for him to close himself down at his parent’s worlds. And somehow he was outside, living his life, becoming friends with Kevin. Even if it wasn’t exactly what they wanted, they were happy enough that Jacob seemed already quite close with them.

So, as the time for their jam session approached, the Design student got even more eager to show the other that they were there for them. It was a strange feeling, wanting so much to be around someone, but Kevin knew it was the right thing. Jacob obviously needed someone to be by his side and they were willing to be that person. Like Changmin had been for them at the beginning of their friendship. And still was, in a way.

It was then, overwhelming when Jacob came into the club room looking so out of place. To someone who hadn’t paid as much attention to the other like Kevin had (not that they would admit that to anyone), there wasn't anything different with him. His dark brown hair was down like every day, his t-shirt was tucked inside his light washed jeans like every day and his sneakers were the same he wore every day. There was, however, something off. And the Psychology student's almost silent greeting was enough to tell Kevin what it was missing.

“Hey…” Jacob said without any energy. He didn’t even smile like he usually would and didn’t wait for Kevin to greet him back before crossing the room to tune his guitar.

He kept his back to the Design student during the whole process and Kevin wasn’t sure if they should have asked what had happened. Jacob, then, turned around gave them a stranded smile, and started to talk about the last song they had played the day before. They took the bait and they played for a while without speaking much with each other. But Kevin’s worried looks were obvious.

“Jacob…” The Design student called softly when the other stopped to play to look at the hour. He raised his eyes to Kevin and it broke their heart. “If you don’t want to talk, it’s okay. I can respect that. But I’m here, okay? If you want to talk about what is wrong.” Jacob lowered his head like he was ashamed and the other only wanted to get up and hug him tight. But they didn’t do it, not wanting to disrespect Jacob’s personal space.

“It’s silly…” The older started, still not looking at Kevin. “I…” Jacob breathed deeply and raised his head to stare at the wall in front of him. “I had to tell my parents about the music club yesterday and they weren’t happy about it.” He made another pause and his pain was evident. “They think it’s a waste of time. Like university as a whole…” Kevin waited for a bit for him to finish, but Jacob didn’t complete his sentence. So they got up and sat closer to him, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Why do they think that?” They asked softly and Jacob got surprised to hear a note of affection on their voice. He then looked at Kevin, maybe for the first time that afternoon and he couldn’t ignore the care in their eyes.

“They wanted me to go to the seminary.” He answered and then continued after seeing the confusion in the other’s eyes. “To become a minister.”

“And you didn’t want it?” Kevin asked again, understanding the situation.

“I used to when I was younger.” A soft smile appeared on Jacob’s lips. “ I have always wanted to help people and it made sense when I was a kid since most of my world was my family and church. But then I grew a bit and wanted to be a basketball player…” A small laugh escaped him and Kevin smiled a bit. “Call it my rebellious phase.”

“Most people listen to heavy metal and dye their hair pink…” They commented and a more genuine laugh came out of Jacob.

“Did you?”

“Oh, no.” They responded quickly, pretending to be offended. “I dyed mine purple.” Their answer made Jacob laugh harder and Kevin noticed how much they had missed it.

“Well, I got into the basketball team at school.” It made the Design student chuckle and Jacob was suddenly proud of himself for making Kevin laugh. And it also made him feel lighter to continue to open up. “We then moved here and I was getting closer to actually choose what I would do after school.” There was another pause and the other nodded to indicate they were listening. “Playing ball was fun, but I still wanted to help people. But, at the same, I had seen a bit of the world, and being a minister didn’t make sense. So I convinced my parents to let me go to university and they only accepted because I said there was no way I was going to the seminary. And they still want me to succeed in a career, like every other parent in the globe.” He gulped suddenly and Kevin tightened their touch on his shoulder. “What it doesn’t mean they are happy, though.”

“That’s rough…” It was the only thing they could think and the small smile Jacob gave them said it was enough.

“In the beginning, I tried to balance what I learned in class and my religious views, but it became too much.” He gulped again like he didn’t want to let whatever emotion he was feeling be apparent. “Life outside the church is so much more rich and colorful and I had to come to terms that the way I was raised was just this small fracture of the real world.” Jacob turned to Kevin and continued looking straight into their eyes. “There is much beauty and wonder in the world. I couldn’t keep myself still pretending that they were right.”

“I think I understand.” They said. “Figuring it out that I was non-binary was a bit like that.” Jacob nodded, interested. “It was so restricting to myself ‘being a boy’...” Kevin made quote marks with their hands. “It was this idea of being just one gender that didn’t fit me. So, instead of forcing myself to it, I found an identity that fitted me better.”

“That’s….” The Psychology student started not sure of what he should say. For him, that was so interesting and amazing that he was sure there wasn't a word to describe it. But then Kevin looked at him expectantly and he just continued without thinking. “Incredible.” The other giggled, a bit nervous, not sure of what Jacob was trying to say. “And brave too. Not everyone would have the courage to understand that they don’t fit something and go after something that fit them.”

“Well, you have…” Kevin crossed their legs and got closer to Jacob, who gave them a warm but weak smile. Maybe they were just fooling themself to have hope, but they just couldn’t help it.

“I don’t think it is as profound as yours, Kevin.” He looked away. “I’m just working on keeping my mind open.”

“And that’s a lot, Jacob!” They exclaimed, shaking the other a bit. Jacob laughed and turned to them, who was continuing seriously. “A lot of people don't have the courage to keep their minds open to what’s different and just reject what they don’t know!”

“I guess you’re right.” A warm smile appeared on his lips and Kevin had to remember to breathe. They weren’t ready for such a soft expression on Jacob’s face directed at them and they decided then it was time to put a bit of distance between them. Patting the other’s shoulder, the Design student moved a bit away. Jacob didn’t seem to notice the difference and Kevin almost breathed relieved. At this pace, it was better if the other didn’t notice the feelings they were trying to keep in check.

“And the club?” Kevin asked, trying to change the subject for their own sake. The Psychology student, however, looked confused at them. “You said your parents thought it was a waste of time…”

“Oh, yeah…” He said, surprised that he had completely forgotten how and why they had started that talk. “Well, they only let me learn the guitar if it was to play in church, which I never did. So they stopped approving it…” Jacob started, suddenly confused as to why all of these were such a big deal for him. Why did his parent’s disapproval or approval mean so much to him? “I always played to myself and when I decided to join the club, I just didn’t tell them.”

“So rebel Jacob is back?” Kevin teased him, making the older giggle.

“I guess he is…” He laughed harder, this time with the other.

“Glad that I met him, then…”

“He is glad to have met you too.” They laughed more, even though the obvious connotation of what had just been saying was clear. Jacob, then, continued, being a bit more serious. “Because I missed dinner yesterday, I kind of had to explain why and, well, I said that I had dinner with a friend from the university’s music club.” He did something that surprised Kevin and rolled his eyes. “The discourse was the same. That I should be careful not to be influenced and all of that.” Jacob sighed and the Design student could feel his heartache about it.

“Is that why…” Kevin started to ask but stopped themself when the older turned to them. “You don’t have friends?” They ended up continuing and a sad chuckle came out of Jacob. “Sorry, that came out wrong.”

“No, it’s okay…” He sighed, organizing his thoughts. There were a lot of things that not even Jacob understood about this. “I’m not sure, Kevin.” He turned away while the other stared at the side of his face. “I think moving to Korea shifted the way I thought and understood myself and, in a way, I kept my distance from people because of that.” The Psychology student turned back to them. “Maybe I wasn’t sure how to act around other people until now.” Jacob offered a sad smile to Kevin, who felt their heartbreak a bit more.

“You don’t need to know how to act around other people, Jacob.” They said, meaning every word. “You just act like you are.” The other opened his mouth to protest, but Kevin continued. “And if, and only if, you did something wrong or not great, you think and change it.” They, then, raised their gaze to Jacob’s eyes, so he could see how serious they were being. “There’s nothing wrong or bad with being who you are.”

The Psychology student’s mind went blank. He had no idea what to say and Kevin’s stare straight into his eyes didn’t leave any space for disagreement. Especially because rationally, Jacob knew that. He knew and studied techniques to help people understand that. But for some twisted reason, he just couldn’t believe that for himself.

“Thanks, Kevin.” He finally said, feeling his eyes fill with tears.

“Oh, my…” They started when Jacob sniffed to not start to cry. “Don’t cry, I have no idea of how to deal with people crying…” The Design student let out in a panicked matter, which made him laugh. At the same time, however, a few tears came down and it represented exactly what Jacob was feeling. There was this constant sadness accompanying him and it took a lot of his energy to not let anyone see it, but at that exact moment, he was so glad that he let Kevin see a bit of it.

“It’s okay, Kev…” Jacob said, reassuring the other while he cleaned the tears. They didn’t seem reassured whatsoever, still panicking a bit, and a small chuckle came out of him. “You don’t need to do anything. I’m just glad you wanted to hear me.”

“Oh, Jacob…” Kevin said, touched. “Please tell me I can hug you because I’m needing a hug and bet you are too!” The Psychology student chuckled again and nodded.

The other came closer slowly and he opened his arms. Kevin immediately closed the distance while Jacob crossed his arms around their small frame. The Design student let out a small sound of satisfaction after feeling his embrace and Jacob could understand why. There was no awkwardness or tension, just a warm feeling. It was a new sensation for him and the only way he could describe was familiarity. Like a home, he didn’t know he had.

That night, Kevin went back to his dorm and found Changmin studying at his bed again. This time, however, they went over their night routine before sitting closer to their roommate to put their head on his shoulder.

“It’s everything okay, Kev?” The Performing Arts student asked, finally letting his worry out. The other only hummed before raising their head to look at Changmin. He was wearing his glasses and his dark hair was still wet from the shower he had taken after his last dancing class. Kevin always thought he looked so cute like that, but now the nickname had made them think back that in that afternoon Jacob had used it for the first time.

“I think I’m friends with Jacob now…” They commented and Changmin went into full comforting mode. Which was first him being very shocked without saying anything and then starting to list whatever he could think that could help someone. Kevin, however, stopped him while he was offering all kinds of ice cream he could leave to buy at that hour. “I’m okay with that, Changmin-ah. He needs a friend, not a relationship.” The Design student smiled at him and it looked sad to Changmin, so he hugged Kevin, who welcomed that so familiar body. But it suddenly felt a bit less comfortable and warm.

Those words, however, kept on ringing on the Performing Arts student’s mind during the night. After Kevin went briefly over what had happened with Jacob, they went over to sleep in their bed and left Changmin alone in the dark going over and over again what they had said about the other boy needing a friend and not a relationship. It was exactly what he had said to Chanhee after getting closer to Kevin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, guys.  
> I know the update schedule is a bit over the place, I'm working on getting back on track.  
> These last few chapters were very focused on Jacob's struggles, so they are a bit heavy. The tag "I try to write fun stuff and people end up suffering" is very real.  
> And if anyone feels that the plot had been slow, it because I wasn't sure of how to balance everything in the story. I think that I managed to figure it out now.  
> Anyways, thank you all for reading, leaving kudos and comments. It always makes my day.  
> See you next week.
> 
> I'm lowkey reclusive in social media, but you can find me at [@lookspatricia](https://twitter.com/lookspatricia) and [lookslikepatricia](https://lookslikepatricia.tumblr.com/).


End file.
